1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a coordinate detection system, information processing apparatus and method, and a computer-readable carrier medium for identifying a type or a contact timing of an indicating object.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, an electronic whiteboard has been used at conferences, etc. in companies, educational institutions, governmental institutions, etc., that is provided with a large display for displaying images and that allows users to write or draw characters, numbers, or images including graphics on the display with an indicating object such as a stylus or a finger.
In recent years, as the above electronic whiteboard, for example, StarBoard (registered trademark) manufactured by Hitachi Solutions, Ltd. and Cyber Conference (registered trademark) manufactured by Pioneer Corporation have been provided. An electronic whiteboard equipped with an optical touch panel has also been proposed.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2008-176802 discloses a coordinate input/detecting apparatus that is the electronic whiteboard equipped with the optical touch panel. The coordinate input/detecting apparatus includes light emitting units for emitting light that travels in an input region with a predetermined range; a reflecting unit that is arranged at a predetermined position on a peripheral portion of the input region; an intensity-distribution detecting unit that receives light emitted by each of the light emitting units and then reflected by the reflecting unit and that detects an intensity distribution of the received light; and a coordinate identifying unit that identifies, using the intensity distribution, the coordinate of a light blocking position at which the light traveling in the input region is blocked. In the coordinate input/detecting apparatus, a position coordinate of an indicating object is identified by a change in the intensity of light blocked by the indicating object.
In the coordinate input/detecting apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2008-176802, a finger or a stylus is used as the indicating object, and a contact timing of the indicating object is recognized by a change in the intensity of light blocked by the approaching indicating object.
There is a need for a coordinate detection system, an information processing apparatus, a method, and a computer-readable carrier medium capable of accurately identifying a type and a contact timing of an indicating object and improving drawing accuracy.